Cy Pres awards are residual funds in class actions (and occasionally other types of proceedings like bankruptcy and probate matters) that, for any number of reasons, are unclaimed or cannot be distributed to the class members of beneficiaries who were the intended recipients. Under the cy pres doctrine and Massachusetts Court Rules, courts can distribute these residual funds to appropriate charitable causes. The Massachusetts IOLTA Committee as well as the legal aid organizations and related initiatives they support are appropriate beneficiaries.

The IOLTA Committee’s mission of improving access to justice for those less fortunate makes it an ideal match for class action residuals, as one underlying premise for all class actions is to make access to justice a reality for people who otherwise would not be able to obtain the protections of the court system. Residual funds are used to support the work of legal aid organizations.